K.KARTHIKEYAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The 1st and 2nd petitioner, who were arrested and remanded to judicial custody on 25/10/2021 and 16/5/2022 respectively in the present case for the offences punishable under Ss. 8(C), 20(b)(ii)(C) and 25 @ 8(C), 20(b)(ii)(C), 25 and 29(i) of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 in Crime No.907 of 2021 on the file of the respondent police, seek bail.

(2.) The case of the prosecution is that on 24/10/2021, at about 10.15 hours, the de-facto complainant namely Tr.Devakumar, Sub Inspector of Police, attached to M5 Ennore Police Station, Chennai, received a secret information and entered the same in the general diary, then got permission from the Inspector of Police, the Sub Inspector of Police along with police party went to Athipattu Bridge Kathivakkam Highway junction. On vehicle search they found a person carrying white colour fertilizer gunny bag in front of the vehicle bearing Reg. No.TN 05-BV-4947. The police party intercepted him and interrogated him and on enquiry he revealed his name as Karthikeyan/A2 and 22 Kgs of ganja was found in the gunny bag. The accused person had purchased ganja from Andhra and gave it to A1, A5 and A6/2nd petitioner herein for sale. Based on their confession, A3 and A4 were arrested on 24/10/2021 and on secret information, A1 was arrested on 24/10/2021 and 25 Kgs of ganja was seized from their house. Further, the respondent police arrested the accused and remanded them to judicial custody. Then they had taken 2 pockets of dry ganja weighing about 50 grams each and sent the same for chemical examination. Based on that, a case was registered in M-5 Ennore Police Station, Chennai in Crime No.907 of 2021 for the offences under Ss. 8(c), 20(b),(ii),(C) and 25 of NDPS Act 1985 as against the accused persons (A1 to A6) on 24/10/2021 at about 13.30 hrs by the respondent police.

(3.) The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners would submit that the petitioners are arrayed as A2 and A6 in this Case. He would further submit that the respondent police suspected that the petitioners are members of the gang of one Dhanasekar and in order to curtail the activities of the said Dhanasekar, a false case has been registered by the respondent police. He would further submit that, the entire prosecution is with exaggerations and serious doubts and there are reasonable grounds to believe that the petitioners are not involved in the case and a false case has been foisted for other obvious reasons. He would further submit that, as per the prosecution, the case was stated to be registered on 24/10/2021 at about 1.30 p.m. by the Inspector and the serious doubt in the prosecution case is exposed by the fact that, as per the prosecution, A3 and A4 were arrested on the same day by the very same Inspector at Thiruverumboor, Trichy which is about 300 Kms away from Chennai at about 17.00 hrs (5.00 p.m.) which could not have been possible. Both the petitioners do not have any previous case registered against them under the NDPS Act. He further reiterated that none of the accused involved in this case have any previous case under the NDPS Act. He would further submit that, this Court taking into consideration the improbability of the arrest of the A4 by the investigating Officer owing to the distance of the place from which there was a recovery from A1, A2 and A3 has doubted the prosecution case and had granted bail to the co-accused in Crl.O.P.No.11965 of 2022 on 1/6/2022. When this Court had found that the prosecution case is improbable and doubtful and has granted bail to the co-accused, the petitioners are also entitled for bail on parity.